Chapter 11
Aurora went downstairs to find Anthony waiting to take her to work. He was actually outside of the car and he even opened the door for her as she walked up to the limo.
“Good morning”, he tipped his hat to Aurora as she lowered herself into the car. She was a little taken aback by the courtesy. She was already feeling weird about how the day started, and her guard was up.
“Mr. Macauley just wanted to make sure that everything was okay”, Anthony said as he climbed behind the wheel. “We heard about the intruder”. Aurora couldn’t resist, she had to ask Anthony.
“What is the story behind Rita?” Aurora was trying to play it cool. She didn’t want Anthony to know how upset she was about the interaction that morning. Aurora wanted to minimize it with everyone. She didn’t want to admit how invasive she found the experience even to herself.
“She was a really nice girl, but she got hooked on the lifestyle”, Anthony said as he pulled the car onto the road. “She thought that Lance was going to leave his wife for her. She started going to his office during work hours, he told her it wasn’t a good idea. Then she dropped by the house and had coffee with Mrs. Macauley. The boss isn’t going to put up with that, so he cut her out”.
“How long were they going out for?”
“Couple years, I don’t know, it was a long time”, Anthony laughed. “But the boss married his wife to get her families shares in the company. He isn’t going to leave her. If he leaves her Trevor will take his job”.
Aurora didn’t want to hear anymore. She sat back and grabbed her phone. She realized that she had three new messages from Sheila. They were all, ‘Where r u?” Aurora cleared the notifications, keeping the phone in front of her face. She was hoping the driver would take the hint. Anthony was not good with hints.
The driver was really amused by the corporate politics and he continued to laugh and talk about it even though Aurora hadn’t put forth as much as an ‘uh-huh’, in ten minutes. Finally, the car stopped and Aurora practically ran into her building. She couldn’t talk to the limo driver anymore.
Anthony found this all to be hilarious, but it meant that Aurora was falling in love with a man that she could never have. The worst part was that she could never really be mad at him. Lance had been honest about his situation the whole time. No one had been misled.
Aurora took a second as she grabbed the handle of the door to her building. She banged her head gently against the glass. “What have I done?” She muttered to herself. She wasn’t sure how long she had been banging her head, but it was a gentle vibration from her purse that brought her out of the cycle.
“Africa!!!!” It was a text from Sheila. It seemed like it may be salvation, but at that exact moment it was another complication. Aurora tossed the phone violently into her purse. She regretted turning it back on already.
“I am screwed”, Aurora says as she walked in the door.
Aurora was surprised to see that Carly was on the couch. She was wearing one of Lydia’s t-shirts and a pair of underwear. “Session ran long”, was the only explanation Lydia offered. Aurora didn’t have time to care.
“I am three hours late for work”, Aurora continued on her tirade. “I am likely going to end up a crazy stalker lady, I am completely addicted to Lance…”
“I think you need to back up”, Lydia said as she pulled Aurora down onto the couch. Lydia wrapped herself around Aurora. The invasion of personal space was normally a little too much for Aurora, but she needed a hug today. “What’s going on?”
“Lance’s ex was standing over me when I woke up this morning”, Aurora moaned. She was still feeling a little shaken up. “She looks just like me, and he left her crippled and broken. I…I, just…I just can’t!”
“That’s horrible”, Lydia was shocked. Carly just smiled sympathetically, but she didn’t seem very surprised. Aurora looked over for an explanation of the calm response.
“I know what it’s like to date guys like Lance”, Carly shrugged and put an arm around Aurora and Lydia. “I guess, it just doesn’t surprise me”.
Aurora wanted to talk more, but she could feel her phone going crazy. She pulled herself out of the Russian bear hug and went to go get changed. She had a lot of unpleasant business to deal with. It was going to be a long day, and Aurora was ready for bed already.
She got dressed and headed out the door. Lydia and Carly were already back at it in the bedroom so there were no more awkward conversations. Aurora got out onto the streets headed for the office.
“How r u?” The text from Lance read. Aurora put the phone back in her purse and kept walking. She wasn’t going to talk to him anymore. She was not cut out for this lifestyle. She was not the other woman, no matter how crazy this man made her feel. “R u ok?”
“Grrrr!” Aurora tossed the phone back in her purse. Why do you keep checking it? She thought to herself. She quickened her pace. Aurora was four hours late for work.
The line at the coffee shop was out the door. Aurora knew that someone had likely been sent to get the coffee, but she was not heading upstairs without at least a few coffees in her hands.
The smell of the coffee shop was normally very relaxing. It was something that Aurora enjoyed. She could smell it wafting out of the door as people moved in and out. It was not hitting her the same way today. The smell was making Aurora feel funny.
It’s been a very stressful morning, Aurora tried to convince herself. That’s all this is. I am feeling weirded out. There was a pyscho standing over me and now I feel weird. Weirdos make you feel weird.
When she got to the front of the line, Aurora was feeling dizzy and downright awful. She ordered the coffee, and then stood to the side to wait for her order, but she couldn’t hang on anymore. Aurora ran to the washroom.
She was still trying to tell herself that was the stress of the morning as she flushed the vomit down the toilet. She looked in the mirror to make sure she didn’t look like she had just puked. Then she headed out to grab her coffees and head upstairs.
The elevator ride was horrifying as Aurora fought the urge to vomit all over the coffees she was holding. The motion of the elevator car wasn’t helping anything. When it jerked to a stop, she threw up in her mouth a little bit.
“Where have you been?” Sheila was on top of the nauseous intern before she even got out of the elevator. Aurora set the coffees on the reception desk as Sheila pulled her through the office. Aurora was fighting the urge to puke as she was almost thrown into the seat.
“Max may not care if you’re late, but it will be an issue in Africa”. Sheila gave the warning with a smile. She waited for a moment. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m feeling a little off today”, Aurora admitted as she tried to steady herself. The whole morning had been a whirlwind, and her ride through the office courtesy of Sheila had been a rough one. She took a steadying breath and then looked up into some very concerned eyes. “I’m excited though”.
“I can’t believe you’re still with that jack ass”, Sheila complained. “That’s what’s doing this to you! He’s the problem here. It’s all of these men, they think they can treat us however they want!”
“It’s over”, Aurora reassured her. “I am done with him”. Aurora could feel her purse vibrating every few minutes. She knew that Lance was texting like crazy. She knew that she was going to have to deal with this soon, but she felt confident that it was over.
“You need to talk to him and make a firm break with this guy!” Sheila was wound up this morning. She was normally an animated person, but she was yelling everything, and her face was all red.
“What’s going on?” Aurora finally asked her friend.
“I talked to the board”, Sheila said. “They all liked that Max was willing to sacrifice your dignity for the organization. Lance made a huge donation”. Sheila looked distraught. “I am pretending to celebrate a victory, but they’re only sending you to Africa because they’re worried that your relationship with Lance will get messy”.
“And then the donations will dry up”. Aurora understood the situation and she could see how much this bothered Sheila. “It’s okay, if it helps, I’m excited to be going”.
“No”, Sheila laughed. “It really doesn’t help. I mean is this not the twenty first century? How is this okay?”
“It’s my fault”, Aurora believed what she was saying. “I let this happen. I could’ve said no at any point. I should’ve said no to Max, I should’ve said no to Lance, and I should’ve reported the whole thing to the board immediately”.
“And then he would’ve made a big donation and the whole thing would’ve gotten swept under the rug, and nothing would happen to anyone”. Sheila stopped and looked at her desk. “We both would’ve likely lost our jobs over it”.
“I don’t have a job”, Aurora shrugged. She would’ve been in the same position, only without having to get anyone coffee.
“You do now”, Sheila said as she picked up a clipboard full of papers and passed them to Aurora. “I’ve been waiting all day to give this to you. You’re being hired immediately”.
“That’s amazing!”
“Yeah, except it’s also to keep you quiet”, Sheila sneered.
“And it’s working!” Aurora grabbed a pen and eagerly started filling out boxes.
“Girl power in action”, Sheila groaned as she sank into her chair. “This means you’ll have to start showing up on time. Whatever the problem you have with sleep, you have to fix it”.
Aurora had had a problem with waking up for as long as she could remember. It was why she scheduled all of her University classes in the afternoon, and why she took a first period spare in high school. Waking up was just not her thing.
“You can only be late three times in your three-month probationary period before you have to meet with the review board”. Sheila warned. “Of course, it may be different for you, because they need to keep you quiet”.
Aurora filled the forms out and then left the office. She wasn’t officially starting work until the next day. “Go home, but be on time tomorrow”, Sheila cautioned as Aurora left the office.
Aurora was no longer feeling nauseous, but she was worn out. Her body ached and she needed to get to bed. Her phone was still going crazy, but she couldn’t be bothered to look at it. Aurora needed to sleep.
The walk home was almost unbearable. She had made the walk a million times, but this time it felt like she had a forty-pound weight attached to her. Aurora noticed that Carly’s clothes were still hanging in the apartment. She didn’t have the energy to care. It was time for sleep. Her bed felt so warm and cozy.